Cancer research is entering a new era in which genetic information and artificial intelligence can help doctors understand diseases in greater detail. Dr. Dan Landau, a physician-scientist and cancer researcher at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York City, is helping advance this approach. His work focuses on understanding how cancer develops, identifying changes in cancer cells, and using advanced computational tools to improve disease detection and monitoring.
Through his contributions to cancer genetics, molecular profiling, and precision medicine, Landau is helping build new ways to connect scientific discoveries with patient care.
An International Academic Journey
Dr. Landau earned his bachelor’s and medical degrees from Tel Aviv University before completing a doctorate in cancer biology at Paris Diderot University in France. He subsequently completed internal medicine residency training at Yale and oncology fellowship and postdoctoral training at Yale, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and Harvard Medical School.
He joined Weill Cornell Medicine in 2016 and advanced to become a professor of medicine and systems and computational biomedicine. He also treats patients as an oncologist at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center.
His career brings together clinical oncology, genetics, computer science, and technology development—fields that increasingly overlap in modern cancer research.
Using Genetic Information to Understand Cancer
One of Landau’s major research interests is understanding how cancer evolves at the cellular level. Tumors are not always made up of identical cells. Instead, they can contain different populations of cells with distinct genetic changes, some of which may help cancer survive treatment or spread.
Landau has contributed to the development of single-cell profiling technologies that allow researchers to examine genetic information from individual cells. These approaches can help scientists identify how cancer develops, how different cell populations interact, and why some diseases become resistant to treatment.
His research also explores cell-free DNA, fragments of genetic material that circulate in the bloodstream. By analyzing these fragments, researchers can investigate whether a blood sample contains evidence of cancer-associated genetic changes.
This work supports the development of liquid biopsies, which may allow clinicians to monitor certain cancers through blood tests rather than relying exclusively on repeated tissue biopsies or imaging.
Turning Research Into Practical Cancer Monitoring
Landau has helped translate scientific discoveries into technologies with potential clinical applications. In 2019, he helped launch C2i Genomics, a company that used whole-genome sequencing and machine learning to monitor cancer through molecular testing. Veracyte acquired the company in 2024, expanding its capabilities in minimal residual disease testing.
Minimal residual disease refers to small amounts of cancer that may remain after treatment even when conventional tests cannot easily detect them. Identifying this disease can be important for estimating the risk of recurrence and monitoring how patients respond to therapy.
Landau also helped establish Montage Bio, which is developing precision-medicine approaches using genomic and computational technologies.
These developments illustrate how discoveries in academic laboratories can move toward practical diagnostic applications. The usefulness of each test depends on the cancer type, clinical evidence, and the intended medical decision.
A New Leadership Role in Computational Biomedicine
In August 2026, Weill Cornell Medicine announced that Landau would become the inaugural chair of its new Department of Systems and Computational Biomedicine, effective September 1.
The department brings together researchers working with genomics, artificial intelligence, molecular measurement, and large-scale patient data. Its aim is to improve understanding of disease and help researchers identify new opportunities for prevention, diagnosis, and treatment.
The initiative is supported in part by a $20 million gift to Cornell University from philanthropists Andrew and Ann Tisch. Under Landau’s leadership, the department plans to develop advanced research resources, recruit scientists, and encourage collaboration across disciplines.
Advancing the Future of Precision Medicine
Dr. Dan Landau’s work demonstrates how the combination of medicine, genetics, and artificial intelligence can create new opportunities in cancer care. His research into individual cells, circulating DNA, and computational analysis is helping expand the tools available to scientists studying cancer development and recurrence.
Although not every research finding translates directly into a clinical treatment, these advances provide important foundations for more personalized medicine. By connecting laboratory discoveries with diagnostic technology and clinical research, Landau is contributing to efforts to make cancer detection and monitoring more precise.
His appointment to lead Weill Cornell Medicine’s new department represents another step in building collaborative research programs that could shape the future of biomedical science.
